Birth totem woodpecker is one who is deeply devoted to loved ones, be they friend, family member or lover. When operating solely from the emotional center, the primary focus for woodpecker is to be utterly devoted to another, perhaps even at the expense of the self. By focusing their love so completely "outside" of themselves, the individual with birth totem woodpecker seeks to find validation in the love and acceptance of their beloved. When that love is reciprocated, then woodpecker believes him/herself to be happy, yet when the love of another toward her undergoes any change, however subtle, she is once more faced with the truth from which she cannot escape - true happiness is a gift we can never receive from another, it is a present that we give to our self.

It is believed that woodpeckers thrumming drum roll against a tree, is the heartbeat of the Earth Mother. It is also said that woodpecker calls the thunder from the sky with the same rhythmic knocking. Mimicking his beat with drum or rattle, the Shaman induces a state wherein he/she may cross planes (dimensions) to converse with the animal totems, the ancestors and to ride on the wind of great mystery to see what lies ahead or to tap into the powerful medicine of the totems. When woodpecker bores into a tree in search of the beetles and insects which provide her sustenance, she uses her beak and head to drum out the holes and uncover her meal. This symbolizes the need for one with birth totem woodpecker to gain emotional perspective, to learn when detachment is needed, to literally use her head instead of recklessly following her heart. This is the process of integrating the emotional center with that of the mind/physical, and a challenging task for one as sensitive and prone to bouts of overwhelming emotion as he. Yet when true discernment can be found, learning when to give freely, and learning when another is merely tapping a life sustaining vein without returning energy, then woodpecker may find the rhythm of his own true heartbeat, and make the leap across planes to greet an integrated self.